Avoid Overuse Injuries

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – Good news and bad news if you are an endurance athlete.

At first glance, you are to be commended because you’re clearly doing all you can to stay in condition and keeping your heart healthy, but there is a downside.

By definition, endurance athletes are definitely going beyond moderation and pushing themselves. The odds are quite good you are more likely to have overuse injuries: things like tendinitis, patello-femoral pain syndrome, plantar fasciitis, and stress fractures.

Wear and tear are part of the process for people who push themselves athletically. Over the years my experience with patients has taught me that rest is very helpful and, in many cases, adjusting to a different type of exercise can help.

You can push yourself but overuse of one muscle group can be a shortcut to disaster.

Dr. Brian McDonough

Dr. Brian McDonough has been medical editor at KYW Newsradio for more than a quarter-century (since 1987)!
Brian McDonough has been honored as Family Physician of the Year by the Delaware Academy of Family Physicians, and is a Sir William Osler...